Silo Emptying

Silo Cleaning UK (Buchen ICS) offer a wide variety of services in regards to silo cleaning, and one of the key elements of this is silo emptying.

Silo emptying is one of the trickier aspects of silo cleaning, but it is also one of the most important. When a silo is empty, it is the perfect time to clean it; most organisations usually clean their silos around twice a year, and the vast majority do so when the silo is empty. In fact, it is generally considered that the silo has to be empty in order for it to be properly cleaned.

That being said, as stated, it isn’t easy to completely empty a silo, especially if you tend to leave it for a long time before emptying it. Consider that you may clean it twice a year, but you don’t necessarily have to wait that long to empty it; the more often that you carry out silo emptying, the easier it will be, and as a result, the process of silo cleaning will also be easier.

Why is that? Well, like with anything that is used regularly, the longer that something is left unchecked, the more dirt or waste you will find. For example, there can be left-over produce on the walls of a silo, which can not only reduce the amount of useful produce in the silo over time, but it can cause real issues when it’s time to refill the silo, hence the need to empty it and clean it. A build-up of waste within the silo can lead to a variety of other problems if left unchecked, such as leaks, flow disruption, hygiene issues such as hazardous material and contamination, and silo deterioration. The silo cleaning process will help to remedy or prevent some of these from happening, but they are more likely to arise in the first place if the silo is not emptied regularly, otherwise the waste continues to build up and the growing concerns will only get worse.

However, the process of silo emptying will differ depending on the nature of the silo itself, and depending on the form of waste build-up. For instance, when it comes to a cement silo, a common method is to use what is considered an industrial-strength “weed whip”, and the whips will rotate a set of flails against the material, whilst creating a pathway for the loosened waste residue to leave the silo and working from the bottom upwards so that the waste can gradually leave rather than being removed in one large produce at the end of the process. On the other hand, for a sugar silo, they are considered something of a “self-cleaning” material in the short and medium term, so in regards to a larger build-up within the silo which requires emptying, it is only occasional when one would have to carry out a deep and extensive emptying prior to a full cleaning of the silo. When it comes to a feed silo, though, the main thing to do will be to use a small portable auger, which uses an electric motor and is inserted into the silo to remove waste residue.

Silo emptying is a crucial part of the silo cleaning process, but the way in which you go about it, and the potential problems to look out for are dependent on the factors listed above. It can be tricky, but its importance cannot be understated. Fortunately, we here at Silo Cleaning UK can help you with this, as well as providing further guidance and advice for future silo emptying processes.

For more information about silo emptying, and the other silo cleaning services that we provide here at Silo Cleaning UK, you can visit www.silocleaninguk.com.